Applications Being Accepted for Stowe Story Labs’ October Connemara Writers’ Retreat
Melody Cooper (Stowe Alum, Mentor, and Board Member and LA-based Screenwriter) mentors at the 2023 Connemara Writers’ Retreat.
We are pleased to announce the opening of the application process for Irish artists for our third Stowe Story Labs’ Connemara Writers’ Retreat. The Retreat will run October 14 – 18, 2024, at the storied Renvyle House Hotel on the dramatic Atlantic Coast of Connemara, County Galway, Ireland. The application can be found here. Applications are open to screenwriters resident in Ireland or Irish writers abroad working with the Irish screen industries.
We are pleased to be collaborating with Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland, the Galway Film Fleadh, and the Renvyle House for the third year to offer this program.
Through a grant from Screen Ireland’s Screen Stakeholder’s Funding Scheme, ten participants will be selected through this special application season for screenwriters/filmmakers resident in Ireland. The process opens July 25, 2024 and runs through August 15, 2024.
Applicants admitted through this process will have the program fee and room and board covered to attend the program. The only costs will be the €10 application fee and travel to and from Renvyle.
Stowe Writers’ Retreats offer participants three, one-hour, one-on-one script note sessions with three different industry mentors; panel discussions and artist Q&As; structured peer group sessions; and social time and meal time to help develop new contacts and colleagues in the film and television sectors. There is also – most importantly – time to write, reflect, and revise.
One participant will be chosen as a Stowe Launch Fellow, to further develop the work brought to the lab and to participate in the 2025 Galway Film Marketplace at the 2025 Galway Film Fleadh. You can learn more about Stowe Launch here.
Mentors at the Retreat this October will include U.S.-based filmmaker Ellie Foumbi and Creative Producer Jonathan Duffy. Irish-based mentors will include Ciara Appelbe, Conor Barry, Aaron Farrell, and Ali Doyle, among others. You can learn about all Stowe mentors here.
Stowe looks for artists showing a promising story idea, presenting a well-developed first draft of a pilot or feature script, and demonstrating a collaborative nature and ability to do the work to further develop the script. Experience in the film and television sectors is not required, but a demonstrable capacity to do the work and an understanding of the fundamentals of screenwriting and filmmaking are critical.
Screenwriters, writer/directors, writer/producers may apply. Teams of two (writer/director, writer/producer) may also apply. If a team is admitted, the team will share mentor meetings and peer group slots and must pay a lodging and meal supplement for the program.
Best of luck if you choose to apply, and of course reach out if you have any questions.
About Stowe Story Labs:
Stowe Story Labs is a Vermont, U.S.-based nonprofit dedicated to helping emerging screenwriters, filmmakers, and creative producers develop skills and projects. We do this through labs, retreats, and ongoing mentoring programs. Our ultimate goal is to help artists get work made and seen. https://www.stowestorylabs.org/
About Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland:
As the national agency for the Irish creative screen industry, Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland is the creative partner to the sector, investing in talent, creativity and enterprise. We are inspired by original storytelling that will emotionally move audiences at home and abroad. Through a wide range of practical funding supports across development, production, distribution, promotion and skills development, Screen Ireland supports the sector at every stage. We support filmmakers in their creative pursuit to share valuable artistic, cultural and commercial stories on screen. For more information, please visit: https://www.screenireland.ie/
About Galway Film Fleadh:
Galway Film Fleadh is a week-long international film festival taking place every July on the western edge of Europe in Galway, Ireland. Founded in 1989 as a platform for Irish filmmakers to exhibit their work to their peers, the central goal of the Galway Film Fleadh remains unchanged: to be a platform for the boldest new films, and to bring audiences & filmmakers from around the world together, to celebrate our shared passion for film. For more information, please visit: https://www.galwayfilmfleadh.com/